During a few days earlier this year (April 24–27) I rode my bike. You decided how far I needed to go.

42 people challenged meto ride a total of 796 km.I covered 703 km.

I had to bail out on the last day after 103km and a crash in heavy rain.Of course I honored the donations and completed the remaining distanceonce I recovered a bit a few days later. Here's how it all happened:

One week earlier ... doing what needed to be done. #cologne #carneval #survivors

Work in progress.

Done early with the last session of the week. Not able to train in the mountains yet, but getting stronger and more mindful every day.

Six weeks since the crash, already three weeks into training and very slowly preparing for another attack this year. Life is too short for self-pity, folks.

Two new constant reminders for grit and mindfulness. Two jerseys, from a crash that didn't put me down and a team that I'm forever grateful to. #unogwajachallenge

Ten days later, recovering well, done with the shoulder surgery. And just to answer a few common and foolish questions these days: Will you stop riding a race bike now? Will you call it a day and stop signing up for the Comrades Marathon? Or the Unogwaja Challenge? Did this break your spirit? Will you avoid the nasty downhill again where you crashed? Seriously ... once and for all: Hell – fucking – no. #UnfinishedBusiness #UnogwajaChallenge #ComradesMarathon

Hard is what makes this great, they say. Watching and cheering for strangers and the team was good. Not even close to the feeling of crossing that line though, my fight will still go on. Florian vs Comrades (1:3). Tomorrow: Back to the basics. Back to the drawing board. Back home. #unogwajachallenge #comradesmarathon #comrades2014

The »Seriously?« PackageUgh! This added another 50 km to the schedule. Voted on 3 times. Thank you!

Pro tip: The Mordor Package.This donation added massive 300 more kilometers to the schedule for 500 EUR.That's it. Designed for someone with a big heart and a desire to see me suffer.Voted on 1 time. I'm still lost for words ... thank you!

April 22

Anonymous added 50 km from Germany ("go Flo").Dorit added 10km from Germany ("Go...might your muscles burn.").John added 2 km from South Africa ("Honoured to be your teammate and for you to be part of this journey!").Petra added 10 km from Germany ("One man's trash is another man's treasure").

April 21

David added 10 km from Northern Ireland/USA ("Flex those German calves! See you in Africa soon").

A bunch of frequently asked questions

Who are you? What is this?

My name is Florian Holstein from Nuremberg, Germany. I'm just a regular guy, a wannabe runner/cyclistwho wants to take his training to the next level and help to make the world a better place: You decide how long I need to ride the next few days by donating a small amount to a certain charity organisation. Which will help you to feel good. I suffer on the bike. Which will help me to feel good ... in a very different way. Everyone wins. I'm not sitting on my butt waiting for donations – I promise I'm working as hard as I can.

Wait ... where does the money go to?

I'm not doing this for myself, to get rich or to even cover my costs. The donations go 100% to Community Chest, a respected Charity organisation that I'm supporting since I stayed in South Africa last year. The money helps more than 220.000 people in local communities directly through welfare, education and health projects. No bullshit here – I'm not taking a single cent. Please contact me if you need to know more about the work that we are doing down there. You can also follow my transactions to Community Chest.

Why are you doing this?

You and I, we'll make the world a better place by collecting money to people in need. Plus: I love a good challenge. You'll entertain yourself by testing how much pain I can take.

How will you proof you rode that far?

The question is a bit insulting. Of course I'll document the whole journey, right here on this page. The rides will be recorded and uploaded to Strava and I'm happy to provide any additional proof that is requested.

Are you training for something?

I'm currently training for the Unogwaja Challenge 2014 (end of May): Riding 1662km trough South Africa on the bike and a 89km run. All in 11 days.

What if people will go crazy and donate millions?

I believe that the internet is an awesome and slightly sadistic place and I'm stupid enough to challenge it. I'm totally prepared for this thing to go out of hand – that's the whole point. I can't promise I'll ride 5000km or something in 4 days, but I'll sit on my bike as long as it's possible.

Seriously? This is stupid!Are you crazy?

Yes, yes and yes.

What is the »Mordor Package«

This package is the best deal I can offer. 300km for 500 EUR (about 7000 ZAR). I hope it won't be voted on too often, otherwise this will be a looong weekend. It's called Mordor Package because it's fucking cruel.

Vote and donate 500 EUR

Can I only donate via credit card?

Yes, unfortunately. To guarantee absolute security I use an established provider (Squarespace) who handles the payments for me. This is very safe, but I can unfortunately only offer the Credit Card option.